A controversial decade-old study that seemed to suggest some gay people can become straight has been used by countless opponents of gay rights, who say it proves homosexuality is a chosen lifestyle.

But now the author of that study says it was flawed, and he’s apologized to the gay community for the heartache it’s caused them.

Back in 2001, Dr. Robert L. Spitzer interviewed 200 gay individuals who’d undergone so-called “reparative therapy” in an effort to become heterosexual. When some said it had worked, Spitzer reported those findings at an American Psychiatric Association meeting.

His presentation caused a stir not just because of the study itself, but because Spitzer had been a leading proponent in having homosexuality removed from the APA’s list of mental disorders some 30 years prior.

Now, though, he says that since the alleged gay-to-straight transformations relied solely on self-reported assessments by his study subjects, “there was no way to determine if [their] accounts of change were valid.”

In a letter to the editor of the Archives of Sexual Behavior, Spitzer wrote, “I believe I owe the gay community an apology for my study making unproven claims of the efficacy of reparative therapy … I also apologize to any gay person who wasted time and energy undergoing some form of reparative therapy because they believed that I had proven that [it] works with some ‘highly motivated’ individuals.”

Welcome back to NewsTalk VIP Club

It appears that you already have an account created within our VIP network of sites on .
To keep your personal information safe, we need to verify that it's really you.
To activate your account, please confirm your password.
When you have confirmed your password, you will be able to log in through Facebook on both sites.

*Please note that your prizes and activities will not be shared between programs within our VIP network.

Welcome back to NewsTalk VIP Club

It appears that you already have an account on this site associated with . To connect your existing account just click on the account activation button below. You will maintain your existing VIP profile. After you do this, you will be able to always log in to http://newstalk1290.com using your original account information.